SUNDAY SPOTLIGHT – GET OBSESSED

Legendary guitar player/frontman Scott “Wino” Weinrich led this rippin’ doomy metal outfit for two solid runs (’77-’86 and ’90-’95; in the hiatus Wino moved to California and joined St. Vitus), and from the beginning, the band somehow found a strange balance in the burgeoning DC punk scene — longhairs who bro’d down with the skinheads. Rare, and somehow touching; the raw earnest strength of Wino’s playing/vocals clearly went a long way, and won over the hearts and ears of so many seminal musicians and fans of the era.

But don’t just take my word for it — listen to (and see) praise straight from the horse’s mouth, namely in the heavy personfication of Henry Rollins, Phil Anselmo, Ian McKaye, and many, many more…I am referring to the scratchy, faded 1994 Sony Music Entertainment rockumentary on The Obsessed (linked after the jump), a very effective and amusing anecdote-laden portrait of one of underground metal’s most serious well-kept secrets. The photography is totally blown-out, but the message comes across loud and clear: The Obsessed are truly what’s up.

I had the pleasure of seeing The Hidden Hand (Wino’s last group) live in February 2007, and the dude does not disappoint — such a sick guitar player and sincerely awesome vocalist. We here at MetalSucks expect that his new project, a supergroup called Shrinebuilder, featuring Al Cisneros and Chris Hakius (both of Om and Sleep) and Scott Kelly of Neurosis, will sssslay. More to come on that soon.

In the meantime, enjoy this blast from the past…

Part One:

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Part Two:

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Part Three:

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-KW